-ism is a suffix in many English words, originally derived from Ancient Greek. It is commonly used in philosophy and politics, pertaining to an
ideology of some sort. Also known to be used in names of religions. For examples, see:
List of philosophiesGlossary of philosophyList of political ideologiesList of art movementsSeveral books have used "isms" in their titles, including:
Todays Isms: Socialism, Capitalism, Fascism, Communism, Libertarianism by Alan Ebenstein, William Ebenstein and Edwin Fogelman (11th ed, Pearson, 1999, ISBN 978-0130257147)
Isms and Ologies: 453 Difficult Doctrines You've Always Pretended to Understand by Arthur Goldwag (Quercus, 2007, ISBN 978-1847241764) ranges from Abolitionism to Zoroastrianism.
Isms: Understanding Art by Stephen Little (A & C Black, 2004, ISBN 978-0713670110), one of a series of similar titles including
... Architecture,
... Modern Art,
... Fashion and
... Religions.